1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to juice extractors and more particularly to an improved extracting device that does not cut, or scrape the item being juiced, thus preserving the flavor of the juice and providing for an improvement in cleanliness and efficiency.
2. Description of Related Art
Invention and use of juice extracting devices is known. Wunderlin U.S. Pat. No. 4,078,481 discloses a strainer basket driven by a motor-powered vertically rotating shaft and a grating disc are mounted on a shaft including a plate with a pivot. The strainer basket is held radially at an equal distance from the plate and a counter force member presses the strainer basket against the plate to allow the basket to adjust to the force of an unbalance within it.
Le Rouzic et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,289,763 discloses an apparatus for extracting juice having a base containing an electric motor, and a bowl removably attached to the base. The motor has a drive shaft which projects into the interior of the bowl for receiving process tools. The bowl is provided with a strainer which is equipped with a skin which fits inside the central tube surrounding the drive shaft. The driving shaft has a spindle fitted on it in two orientations, on in which the strainer remains static during operation and one in which the strainer is driven rotationally when the driving shaft is turning.
Seal, Jr. U.S. Pat. No. 5,035,174 discloses juice extracting device that provides a novel safety switch so that the device may only be operated when it is fully closed.
However, these devices, like many other such prior art juice extracting apparatus, operate by hitting, cutting or scraping the object across a grating device. This results in decreased flavor. It also frequently crushes the pits of the device, which then end up in the strained juice. These devices are incapable of extracting juice from hard, heavily pitted fruits like mangos, plums, cherries and other tropical fruits, as well as fruits with many seeds, such as pomegranates. Still further, these devices are incapable of extracting juice from fruits whose skin is too delicate to peel or scrape.
The present invention fulfills these needs and provides further related advantages as described in the following summary.